Exploration of last frontier on earth, the sea, is largely driven by the continuing demand for energy resources. Because humans are not able to endure the pressures induced at the depths at which energy reconnaissance occurs, we have become increasingly reliant upon ROV technology. The future of the exploration of the oceans is only as fast, reliable and safe as the available technology.
Prior art related to augmented reality navigation, such as U.S. Pre-grant Publication 2011/0153189, disclose systems for superimposing 3D objects and a video feed, but do not provide crucial devices for dealing with the vicissitudes of undersea navigation. Meanwhile, powerful graphics systems used for undersea navigation, such as those described in U.S. Pre-grant Publication 2009/0040070 A1 and U.S. Pat. No. 8,015,507 fail to provide a navigation interface that creates an immersive visual experience for the pilot or user.
An important shortcoming of the available ROV navigation technology is its inability to provide complete spatial awareness, i.e., the ability to consistently know the past and current flight path. Current navigation systems rely on conventional telemetry information, including depth, pitch, roll, camera tilt and heading. However, positioning systems, which provide the geographic location of the ROV, have not been seamlessly integrated with the depth and orientation instruments that constitute conventional telemetry systems.
Another important aspect of undersea exploration is the acquisition and application of information relating to the seabed and subsea structures. Modern multibeam sonar devices with modeling software provide detailed, 3D bathymetric data, which is essential to planning and evaluating exploratory missions. This bathymetric data is used extensively by supervisors and client representatives in the energy resources industry. However, conventional systems do not integrate the use of bathymetric modeling with real-time navigation in a way that facilitates the work of the ROV pilots themselves.
Much like jet fighter pilots, ROV pilots must navigate in three dimensions, in real time, and in conditions where visibility may be limited to between 2 and 10 meters. Accordingly, both types of pilots must have fast, reliable and intelligent data presented to them under low visibility conditions. However, the dynamic user interfaces used for complex aviation missions, which overlay quantitative environmental information, textual plans and other important graphics, have not been made available for comparably complex undersea missions.
A key to establishing a successful operating system for ROV missions is providing for effective collaboration and communication between every person involved in the project. The ability to introduce new data and share that data among the system users, and particularly with the pilot, advantageously leads to increased efficiency and safety.
Accordingly, there is a need for an augmented approach to pilot-ROV interactions in which information can be visualized and logged in the three spatial dimensions and in real time.